Every geek that saw Minority Report wanted that computer that Tom Cruise was using.
The Massachusetts Institute of Technology’s Tangible Media group created a new type of input and output device for interacting with people and programs. It looks weird – like a bunch of Tetris-infused sugar cubes… Max Headroom had a bad dream kinda thing – but it’s really quite amazing and could be the first step in Minority Report type of interfaces.
The input device is basically a bunch of cameras and scanners that recognize your hand movements like a Kinect system on steroids. The output device, on the other 
end, can interpret your hand movements (or computer input of any type) into tangible shapes that can manipulate its environment.
The mechanism that makes it happen is almost Steampunk due to all the levers and gadgetry beneath the actual output table. They are calling it the inFORM display and they are working on different applications for its use.
Minus a full grip, the interface would allow you to literally shake hands with someone across the globe – your hand movements in real time. Perhaps a soldier in Iraq could hold his baby for the first time this way? Although, there is no haptic feedback for the sender right now.
Check out the video below to get an idea of how this works.
You can view their paper for all the geeky details here.
inFORM – Interacting With a Dynamic Shape Display from Tangible Media Group on Vimeo.
Right when Obi-Wan Kenobi stated, “that’s no moon. It’s a space station!,” Han Solo decided to reverse engines, but it was too late. The Death Star already had the Millennium Falcon in its tractor beam. Whether it’s Star Wars, Star Trek, or name your favorite sci-fi – if it’s got space in it, it’s got a tractor beam thingy somewhere.